Time ➳ BTS

Prologue

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about the flashbacks I have gotten.

You ask, what flashbacks? They are of BTS, a boy band whose presence once illuminated my world. It's strange because they died two years ago, each member succumbing to the darkness of suicide.

I can't reconcile it. I thought they were happy.

Keyword: thought.

It seems their smiles concealed the depths of their despair. Imagining them grappling with such emotions is unfathomable—they always projected such joy.

But back to the matter at hand. These flashbacks haunt me, transporting me to their past performances, their shared moments. Yet, a sinister figure lurks in the periphery of my vision, always behind them, hidden. It's a terrifying existence.

I question why I am tormented by these dreams. They are gone—why do they linger in my mind?

I let out a sigh, murmuring their names like a prayer, "Seokjin, Namjoon, Yoongi, Hoseok, Jimin, Taehyung, and Jungkook..." The sorrow is palpable.

One question gnaws at my soul, unanswered since their deaths: Why didn't they die together? Their suicides occurred in different places and at different times. This suggests that something was amiss. They were so close, I thought they'd face the end together.

I glance at the clock on my night stand and sigh again before retreating to my bed. But sleep is elusive. Restless, I ruminate over the past.

Let's begin with the eldest. Seokjin—he was discovered in the dormitory bathroom, a lifeless body in water. The official report said he drowned himself.

Next, Yoongi. His death was even more disturbing. Three words describe it: He burned himself. Upon hearing this, I wept uncontrollably, consumed by grief for Yoongi's tragic end.

Hoseok... Hoseok's demise occurred in the same dorm bathroom as Seokjin's, but by a different method. He overdosed on sleeping pills, his body marked by unexplained bruises. It's shocking to think that someone as perpetually cheerful as Hoseok could succumb to such despair.

Namjoon followed afterwards. His body was discovered in a river; the police surmised he had leapt from a nearby bridge. The mere thought sends chills down my spine. Accepting the reality of his death is impossible. Namjoon, the stalwart leader of Bangtan, was not just a leader—he was a friend, a brother, a vital figure in our lives, like all of them.

Next is Jimin... His end is the most horrific of all, at least in my opinion. I sobbed.

He hanged himself in his bedroom.

The rage wells up within me, a burning desire to find whoever or whatever drove them to this fate. How could someone or something bring them to such a tragic conclusion? I sigh, closing my eyes, letting the memories flood back.

Taehyung... He ended his life with a knife. Reporters said Jungkook found him in the kitchen, lying in a pool of his own blood, the knife lodged in his abdomen.

And finally, the youngest. The police responded to an anonymous call about a death at the BTS dorm. Upon arrival, they found Jungkook on the ground, a gun in his right hand. The absence of other fingerprints on the gun and the bullet in his head led them to conclude suicide. But they were never able to trace the anonymous caller.

The weight of it all becomes unbearable, and I allow the tears to flow freely, the dam breaking as the painful memories flood my mind once again. I cry and cry, the tears an endless cascade of sorrow.

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Word count: 551 words